The House Husband
by Zapin Sonata
Summary: The story brings to life a typical middle class Indian husband Yogesh and his ways to strike balance between his professional and personal life. Yogesh demonstrating expertise in handling office and home affairs still fails to make anybody happy.
It is 5 in the morning and all members of Yogesh's family are asleep other than Yogesh and their pet dog Sanwal. Yogesh who has passed 50's but unlike other men of his age, who would devote the morning time in exercising, read newspaper, chanting prayers, is more interested in involving himself in household chores. He would wait for the landlord to start the boring motor so that he could fill the empty vessels with water to the brim. He would multi-task many activities. He would swap his time in cleaning the utensils and making up tea for himself and his wife. He would run to the verandah then to clean up the pet dog's excretion, feed the dog with water and dog-food and tie him inside the room. He would then wait for his children to wake up so that he could place the beddings at their place. He would then apply shaving cream over his face and rub it with the horse tail shaving brush and walk all around the house looking for any other small work which he could do simultaneously. He would stop by the laundry bag and empty it in the bucket mixing with detergent and water. The only leisure he would like to invest is in smoking a cigarette which he would smoke while sitting on the commode.

The sound of the utensils woke Savitri, Yogesh's wife who has a knee problem. She limps and starts walking unsteadily towards the toilet. On her way to toilet, as she passed through the kitchen retorted, "Why are you washing utensils? The maid will come and do it. You take some rest".

"Your maid will not clean the utensils as I do. The utensils carry soap marks all over. I think we should fire her. I will be cleaning the utensils in the morning and the rest few you can do in the afternoon" retorted Yogesh.

"Not at all! Well, you take the dough and the vegetables out from the refrigerator" shouted Savitri from the toilet.  
"Ok! What else would you want me to do? And then you say take rest." retorted Yogesh.  
"Wake up Vishal, he is getting late for work. Make him a thandai." giggled Savitri.  
"I am not doing anything. I am also getting late for work." raged Yogesh.  
"Oh! You still have two hours to go. Fill up the bottles with water" replied Savitri reaching the drawing room.

"I am 55 now and I don't have the same energy as I had earlier. These boys are good for nothing. They just want to relax before the TV or mobile phones or play with Sanwal. They show no orientation towards house hold responsibilities. I am a fool trying to save money through various ways, toiling hard and they would just wash away the cash on these expensive restaurants. I walk through the crowded vegetable market and negotiate on a cheap price and they will go out and buy costly good-for-nothing products. I am not doing anything now. Let them too take responsibility." spoke Yogesh venting out his anger.  
The shouts had woken Nilesh, Yogesh's younger son. He had listened to the whole conversation which happened between his parents. "Dad; who is telling you to do all this? You get yourself a newspaper, sip a tea and relax. Things will be managed. If need be; I will hire a permanent maid." intervened Nilesh playing with the pet.

"If I start resting, your finances will be shattered. And do you know the amount of loan that is mounted on our head. Don't make empty castles" replied Yogesh going into the bathroom.

After a quick bath, Yogesh came out muttering prayers as streams of water flowed through his body. He moved hurriedly to the adjacent room and started combing his hair and moustache. After being satisfied with his style, Yogesh reached a wall hanging of a deity, lighted the incense stick and started chanting loudly. While chanting he tried keeping his eyes closed but couldn't do for long. His eyes rolled hither and thither like chameleon; examining his children who were getting ready. He remembered that he had peeped in his son's wallet and had found it empty. He had thought of not interfering but couldn't keep his vow.  
"Nilesh, take the money from my wallet." spoke Yogesh getting quickly back to his chanting.  
"I will take it from my card" replied Nilesh.  
"Take cash from my wallet and return me at night after you withdraw from your account" replied Yogesh getting back to the prayer tone.  
Nilesh took the money and while leaving said, "Bye! Dad"  
"Bye! May God bless you! Drive the car slow." replied Yogesh in a soft tone.  
He chanted the prayers for few minutes and started getting ready for his office.

Savitri got him a prantha and tea for breakfast. He bolted his breakfast so quickly that he felt choked.  
Savitri quickly passed him the water bottle and said "Daily you get late and then you scoff up your breakfast. What is the use of you getting up so early?"  
"You people are so thankless. Rather than saying few caring words or helping me, you rather scold me like a dog. May God perish me soon; only then will you understand" whined Yogesh gulping in the last of his tea.  
He stood up, wore his shoes, moved from one room to another and bowed to all deities framed on the wall and lastly went on to his wife Savitri who applied the sacred ash on his forehead. He left his house and started moving through the narrow inter-connected lanes of his society. He liked going through those narrow lanes which had small vegetable shops, grocery shops, milk vending shops etc lined up. It made him remind of his birth city where he used to roam around through the narrow lanes, being with his friends and smoking cigarettes. The old rickety shops resembled with the shop of his childhood city.

He boarded a metro train from the station to his office. On reaching office he went to his manager, greeted him and sat for a while sipping hot tea. Then he moved to his chair, cleaned his table again with a cloth and said to his peon, "Raja ji, Have you again forgotten to clean my table". "No Sir, I did it first in the morning. But the gate is not under my control. People come inside and bring all the dust gathered from outside and then plunge it here. And…" replied Raja, the peon.

"Okay, okay… Get me Amby & Co.'s file." replied Yogesh trying to stop Raja who was in a habit of exaggerating things. Yogesh was fond of tidiness and neat arrangements. Even in his office, he used to keep his files, desk and computer clean. He wanted to keep everything picture perfect - the files, the way the documents were filed, the stationary placed at their proper place, the telephone placed at the right place. He felt proud in producing the document or any stationary item promptly when being asked for. He would joke around with everyone; from peon to his wealthy customers with no considerations to gender, economic background or position. His jokes mainly had a strong element of satire in it which he would use to teach people a lesson. His satire would sometimes hurt people but he believed that teaching a lesson was more pertinent. Overall his company was always liked by everyone right from the poor vegetable vendor to a wealthy merchant, from a security guard to his manager. Even though the lower economic strata people liked the vegetable vendors, mechanic, watchman enjoyed his company more as they would either don't understand his satire or even though if they would understand they would not mind it.

Yogesh sat on his chair keenly inspecting the documents as his customer sat munching chips and sipping tea. He peeped through his glasses to his customer and said, "Gupta ji, when are you going abroad."  
"Soon once you approve our papers and the customer pays his first installments." replied Mr. Gupta who was a legal manager in a firm.  
"Not me Gupta ji, the bank has to approve the papers. I am just an ordinary employee who needs to follow instructions given by bank." replied Yogesh.  
"For me you are the bank. Whatsoever you decide, we will follow that" replied Mr. Gupta chuckling.  
"Really! Well, you need to add these documents too to get this loan approved" said Yogesh writing the names of the documents required on a piece of paper.  
"We have only two documents out of this list. What can be done? Let few pages of paper not stop our business." replied Mr. Gupta holding Yogesh's hand.  
"You need to write an application to the DM of our bank requesting for the same. Your company is our old client and your boss our DM's good friend. It will probably be sanctioned" replied Yogesh.  
"Okay Sir, I will meet you soon after we write to our DM" said Mr. Gupta standing from his chair.

"Your loan getting sanctioned or not will depend upon the big shots of both the companies. Let us leave it up to them; we have done our homework already. What will you have? Tea or coffee?" asked Yogesh still gazing at the documents.  
"Nothing Sir. I would want to leave now." replied Mr. Gupta shaking hands with Yogesh.  
Yogesh stood up from his seat and went to meet his colleagues, this part of the day he used in joking around with fellow colleagues. He had a knack of getting humor from anything which had small quantities of satire mixed with it. He would sit with his colleagues on tea and crack jokes.  
It was 6 p.m. and Yogesh would charge up to leave for home.

His colleagues would stop him to extend the hilarious discussion but he had his whole mind now devoted to his household work. He would take a bus till the nearest Metro. While travelling in Metro he would plan on his 'home' work- which works to be done on the way back home? Which works to be done post reaching home?

Yogesh de-boarded at his station, came out and started walking through the narrow lanes carefully inspecting the vegetables. Just looking at vegetables rejuvenated him. He felt healthy looking at fresh vegetables. He would sometimes travel to far vegetable markets in order to have a look at fresh vegetables. He was so tempted by the vegetables that he would buy more than his requirements. When been asked by his wife he would reason it with cheap prices of vegetables.  
As he walked a vegetable vendor shouted, "Sir, have brought fresh green spinach for you."  
"Will come in half –an-hour" replied Yogesh waving his hand in confirmation.  
Yogesh reached his home, took out his shoes, placed them in the shoe rack and went to his pet Sanwal who was already barking and wagging its tail.

After having had played with Sanwal for quite a while, he came to the drawing room where his wife Savitri brought him tea. He quickly gulped in the tea and asked Savitri, "What should I buy in vegetables"?  
"Anything you like." replied Savitri.  
Yogesh finished his tea, took the vegetable bag and left for the market.  
He reached the market and visited a vegetable seller and started carefully investigating vegetables. He caressed the vegetables, smelled them, dug nails into them to check for their freshness. He always thought of writing a book on 'Selecting the 'right' vegetables' so that he could pass on this legacy to his successors which he had learnt from his father.  
He bought bottle gourd, spinach, cucumber, raw mango, coriander leaves and mint. The last three to make chutney which he relished eating. Not only did he like buying vegetables but also cooking them. At times when Savitri would go out, he would enjoy cooking. Cooking for him was not the routine, following the to-do list one but he liked innovating new recipes.  
Yogesh reached home all tired, sweating in and out. He had bought milk, buttermilk, fruits along with vegetables. He reached home, placed these things in the refrigerator and sat below the ceiling fan closing his eyes. He then undressed himself till he was in his vest and underwear. Yogesh went to the bathroom, sprinkled water on his face and wiped his face with a towel. At home, he used to wear a vest and underwear only. He believed that wearing clothes at home over the sweat drenched body would mean unnecessary waste of resources. If anyone would accidently drop by, he would again wear his office clothes.

After a minute of rest, he stood up and started making chutney in the kitchen. While he made chutney, he poured in alcohol in a glass along with an aerated drink. He gulped the drink while preparing chutney. After having had made chutney, he asked for dinner from his wife. Yogesh would not eat anything so that he could feast on his dinner. His sons would enjoy eating snacks, biscuits and other bakery items in brunch and would they have the food late. Yogesh would be agitated on his son's remark. He was hungry and also wanted that the whole family to have dinner together. Yogesh would use anger, jokes, temptation to lure the boys. The boys would at last drop their weapons before their father's will and had food early.

After the dinner when the boys would lay back and watch TV, Yogesh would wash the utensils while Savitri would put the leftover food in refrigerator. Yogesh would then prepare the night bedding for all and then finally retrieved on his bed.

As Yogesh retrieved, Savitri called him to fill the water bottles. Yogesh would say, "Now I can't work. Ask the boys". Savitri would retort, "They are tired. They work for 11 hours a day. Why don't you fill it? See how Mr. Verma helps his wife in all works."  
Yogesh replied, "How thankless you are? Even if I sacrifice my life over you all, you will still say look at Mr. Verma".  
Yogesh took the blanket over his head and again vowed to never work at home. He would do it daily but would again stumble to his old ways.


End file.
